DAC for Aurender N200


For past 2 years I have been running Aurender N200 into Musical Fidelity M6s DAC. The DAC is built like a tank and very versatile, but I must connect via coax since Aurender clock is superior to DAC clock.
Well, I am ready to upgrade DAC for SQ reasons and presently inclining to PSAudio MkII for US mfr, good reviews, good service, current bargain price.
Q1: What DAC (<$8k) would you consider an optimal match for the N200?
Q2: N200 has very few outputs compared with other streamers in its price class.
I know Aurender has always inclined to USB. All else being equal, is USB the best output?

 

hickamore

The Audio Analogue AA DAC for 5000, it has a great volume control, you can eliminate the preamp…a real steal..

@marco1 I too have found that my Terminator 15th (Which is a Terminator +) sounds really good with the N200. I almost bought a T+A Dac 200 but changed my mind.

Everyone likes something different, of course, and most people recommend what they have. I have the DCS Bartok And it is not at all analytical to my hearing. But I will say the upgrade to the Apex version is a substantial improvement in sound quality. If you got interested in it, I would strongly consider the Apex version, to my ears, the upgrade is very much worth the money.

Have an N20 XLR AES connected to an MSB Discrete DAC with the N20 Clock synced with the Femto clock in the MSB. I use the Word Sync connection on the N20 to connect to the Word clock in the MSB. This sounds superior to just using the N20 Clock. This connection  was recommended to me by MSB

@fthompson251 ya, more than $2k difference between the Terminator and DAC 200.  It’s certainly the better value and imo sounds better too.